是多样还是一样?——论文化的趋同性

Diversity or Uniformity?——On Cultural Convergance

文化是人类不同群体为了维持和创造幸福生活过程中积累起来的经验、智慧的象征符号以及所代表的价值、理想和信念。从时间维度来说,自古至今世界各国各民族创造的生计方式、婚姻家庭亲属社会制度、禁忌仪式及宗教信仰价值观均呈现出从丰富性和多样性向单一性和趋同性发展的趋势;从空间维度来说,全球化背景下的统一的资本市场使得从物质到精神层面的文化因子呈现出向统一性方向发展的态势。因此趋同性是当代人类文化的特征和功能。而多样平衡发展则是人类生存的自然法则。面对实际的趋同与理性的多样,人类究竟还能走多远?

Culture is the symbol of experience and intelligence that different human groups accumulate in maintaining and creating a happy life as well as the values, ideals and beliefs behind the symbol system. In the time dimension, means of livelihood, social institutions of families and clans, taboos and rites as well as religious beliefs created by various countries or nations have shown the trend of development from diversity and richness to uniformity and convergence. In the dimension of space, a unified capital market against the background of globalization has pushed cultural factors at both material and spiritual levels to progress in the direction of unitarity. Therefore, convergance is a feature and function of contemporary human culture. However, a diverse and balanced development is the natural law of human survival. Faced with the convergance in reality and diversity in reason, how far can we go？